


The Kind of Sad That Just Takes Time

by PoliticalPadmé (magnetgirl)



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Ambiguous/Open Ending, F/M, Minor Character Death, Skywalker Family Feels
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-01
Updated: 2018-12-01
Packaged: 2019-08-27 19:05:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 7,207
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16708279
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/magnetgirl/pseuds/PoliticalPadm%C3%A9
Summary: Padmé refuses to meekly go into hiding while others go looking for whoever is behind the assassination attempts. Instead, she insists on accompanying Obi-Wan in the investigation while Dormé and Captain Typho stay on Coruscant, and Sabé goes with Anakin back to Naboo.





	1. Decoy

**Author's Note:**

  * For [AngelQueen](https://archiveofourown.org/users/AngelQueen/gifts).



> Noting they were another of your requests, I included a flirtation between Obi-Wan and Padmé, I hope that works. I honestly wanted to write all of your prompts, so many great ideas! This story got long, but I hope the small moments come through. 
> 
> This story quotes some dialogue directly from _Attack of the Clones_.

C  O  R  U  S  C  A  N  T 

 

"I do not like this idea of hiding." 

"Don't worry. Now that the council has ordered an investigation, it won't take Master Obi-Wan long to find this bounty hunter."

Padmé glares at him as she pulls clothing from the closet and starts to pack.

"I haven't worked for a year to defeat the Military Creation Act to not be here when its fate is decided."

Anakin flashes her a small smile from the window. She's beautiful when she's angry. 

"Sometimes we must let go of our pride and do what is requested of us." To be fair, it is easier to do when what's requested of him is to escort a beautiful senator -- the  _most_ beautiful creature he's ever seen, and a brilliant and compassionate woman as well -- on a secret excursion to her homeworld. Which happens to be the most beautiful planet he's ever seen, too. 

Padmé looks up from her packing. "Anakin, you've grown up."

His chest puffs up at hearing her say it, though of course, Obi-Wan doesn’t think so, which he starts to say, but no, she's still speaking.

"But this isn't about me. It's about what I can do, and I’m wasted on a trip back home." Anakin frowns and moves to join her by the bed. "I understand it's too dangerous for me to be here... anyone working with me could come under fire, too." She thinks of Cordé, dying in her arms, in her place. "But I can help with the investigation."

Anakin's frown grows. "The council… they would never agree."

Padmé flashes him a conspiratorial grin. "Which is why I don't intend to ask them."

Anakin's mouth drops open, momentarily speechless and as he struggles to respond, they are joined by a second young woman, Padmé's height and build, though dressed more simply. 

"Ani, you remember Sabé."

He blinks, looking from one to the other, the only conclusion apparent -- and perturbing. "You're planning to. . ."

"Yes," Padmé confirms, "Sabé will be accompanying you in my place."

"Milady -- Padmé --"

"I'm trusting you, Anakin." She looks up into his eyes. "I need you on my side."

"But I won't be," he protests, "I'm sworn to protect _you_."

"I'll have Obi-Wan --"

He shakes his head. "I'm..." His voice fades as he stumbles over the many inappropriate ways to finish the thought, from 'better' to 'in love with you' and everything in between. 

"--And Sabé will be in far greater danger," Padmé continues, ignoring the interruption. "Please, Ani, keep our secrets safe for me."

She reaches for his hand. Her skin is as soft as he remembers, and her grasp as tender. He glances to Sabé, basically a stranger, his dreams of a romantic escape with his dream girl evaporating.  

"We can do this Anakin," she tells him, and he remembers her loyalty to Padmé. It mirrors his own. "Together."

He nods and Padmé leans up to kiss his cheek. Anakin blushes, flustered, and the women share a smile as he looks at his feet.

* * *

"Be safe, milady."

"Thank you, Captain," Sabé responds and nods toward Dormé, deflecting his attention to the handmaiden who will be playing the part of Padmé in the capital. She is aware of the switch, but Typho is not. They don't doubt his loyalty, but he will be better able to focus on protecting Jar-Jar and Dormé if he needn't worry after Padmé, and Sabé for that matter. "Take good care of Dormé. The threat's on you two now."

"Anakin." He forces his expression into a mask of calm as he meets Obi-Wan's gaze. "Don't do anything without first consulting either myself or the council."

 _Too late_ , he thinks, but nods. "Yes, Master." 

Obi-Wan smiles and turns his attention to the senator, or who he thinks is the senator. 

"I'll get to the bottom of this plot quickly, milady. You'll be back here in no time."

Sabé bows her head to better hide her visage. "I'll be most grateful for your speed, Master Jedi."

Anakin takes her elbow, interrupting before Obi-Wan can look too closely. "It's time to go."

Obi-Wan looks thoughtful, something tickles at the back of his mind, but he can't identify what it's trying to tell him. Oh well. "Anakin, may the Force be with you."

Anakin gently pushes Sabé to keep walking and not look back. "May the Force be with you, Master."  He turns and runs to catch up to Sabé, and Artoo trundling beside her. 

"I don't like this. Leaving Padmé alone, exposed. . ."

"She's not exposed," Sabé counters, "she's hidden three times over. And she's with Obi-Wan." These statements are slightly contradictory but Sabé banks on Anakin being too agitated to notice. "Don't worry."

"This is my first assignment on my own," he murmurs. And he's already screwed it up from the council's point of view.

"You're not alone, either."

Artoo beeps, seeming to agree, and the two laugh together, a release of tension. Watching, Obi-Wan and Captain Typho share a quiet look. 

"I do hope he doesn't try anything foolish."

"I'd be more concerned about her doing something than him."

In shadow, Padmé watches, and follows Obi-Wan when he finally takes his leave. She witnesses his conversation at the diner, and, dressed in Jedi robes smuggled out by Anakin, is able to sneak after him to the library. She can't hear what Yoda tells him and the class of children, but after speaking with them Obi-Wan instructs a droid to prep his ship. Padmé runs to the hanger and crawls into the space behind the pilot's seat, able to hide before Obi-Wan appears and catapults the fighter into space. 

 


	2. Journey

R  E  F  U  G  E  E    S  H  I  P 

The ship is crowded, with many noises fighting for dominance of the din. Already on edge, Anakin jumps when a wookie knocks over a table too small for his long limbs. Sabé laughs. Anakin scowls.

"Relax."

"I'm your bodyguard," he protests.

"I can protect myself."

Scowl darkening, he stabs his food with his fork.

"Do you travel a lot?"

He shrugs. "It's the life of a Jedi."

"Or a senator."

Anakin raises his eyes to hers. "I like ships," he tells her, softly. "It matters where you're going. Not where you've been."

Sabé smiles, surprised he's so earnest, but maybe she shouldn't be.

"Naboo," she offers.

He nods. "I've been wanting to go back. I've been dreaming of it. Everything is so green ...and blue ….and beautiful."

Sabé's eyes twinkle, knowingly. 

"What?"

"I've known Padmé a long time. I've seen many people look at her the way you do." Anakin's eyes widen, vaguely panicked. "But she's committed to the Republic."

"I don't. . ." he argues, but can't quite figure what to say. Sabé cocks her head, expression unchanged. "You don't know anything."

Sabé shrugs and reaches over to pick a root vegetable off his plate. 

 

J  E  D  I    S  T  A  R  F  I  G  H  T  E  R

Obi-Wan groans as the fighter drops into normal space. The jump was uncomfortable -- more than usual -- and had missed the mark.

"The calibration is still off. . . Arfour, why is our weight unbalanced?" The droid answers in binary, chirping with some attitude. "What?" He peers at the readout. "No, it has nothing to do with Dex's cooking." Anakin must have given the droid another 'upgrade'. His apprentice is always going on about droid personalities but Obi-Wan simply wants precision. "The difference is over forty kilos...I don't want to hear any excuses, run it again."

"I expect it's something to do with me," Padmé posits, pulling herself up from her hiding place behind his seat in the cockpit. Obi-Wan spins in his chair and the fighter does a nose dive in space, causing Padmé and the droid to squeal.

"Senator -- _what_ are you doing here? Where's Anakin? What's happened?"

"Please get the ship under control!"

He turns, pulls the steering up and flips two buttons. As the fighter regains equilibrium, Obi-Wan turns again, looking expectantly for an explanation.

"Anakin is on his way to Naboo as planned."

Obi-Wan purses his lips, puts two and two together. "With another decoy."

"Yes." Padmé bristles under his scrutiny. "If Naboo isn't safe why was I sent there?"

The Jedi shakes his head.

"You have compromised both missions--"

"I am the target and I refuse to run away while you risk--"

"I am far more at risk with you here! And now I have to waste fuel to turn around and send you--"

"We don't have time for that! I'm going with you."

Obi-Wan stares. Padmé lifts her chin in defiance.

"I am under orders to investigate the attempts on your life, it will be decidedly more difficult with you along."

"You are under orders to investigate the attempts on the life of Senator Amidala. I heard she's on Coruscant." Obi-Wan sucks in his breath. The audacity! "Or perhaps Naboo?"

"This is not a game--"

"And I'm not here to play!" Her shout echoes in the tiny space and they stare at each other's flushed cheeks and flashing eyes. "The Republic is in danger and we are _both_ sworn to protect it. I'm going with you."

Obi-Wan sits back, strokes his beard. He wants to argue but the first jump was already a strain on the engines, and she's right that they don't have time, and it's safer as a pair. Sighing he orders Arfour to make the proper weight adjustments and tells Padmé to strap in.

 

R  E  F  U  G  E  E    S  H  I  P

Anakin startles, waking Sabé in their too small sleeping space.

"What's wrong?"

"...Nothing." Her look says she requires more of an answer. "Just a dream."

"What kind of dream?"

Anakin bites his lip, looks at his hands. Sabé frowns, moves the blanket around his shoulders. He raises his eyes to hers.

"My mother. She was hurt. . . calling for help. It felt. . . real."

She runs a hand down his arm in comfort. "Something that happened when you were little."

He shakes his head. "I don't remember. . ." There's anger in his voice and his shoulders tremble under her embrace.

"Is there a way to get in touch with her?"

"No, she's. . ." He looks away, ashamed. _A slave. And he left her there and now she needs him, she needs him._

"Anakin!"

He snaps out of the reverie, meets Sabé's worried gaze. 

"I need to go to her."

Sabé nods. "We can switch ships at the next port."

Anakin blinks. ". . .What?"

She points to the map on the wall. "This line doesn't stop at Tatooine but--"

"We can't. . . _go_ to. . ."

"Why not?"

Anakin shakes his head. "It's. . . dangerous."

"No one would expect to find us there, not even the Jedi or the Chancellor."

"They would disapprove. . ." Not that they hadn't already disobeyed both. Anakin sighs.

Sabé takes a breath, reaches for his hands. "What do you want to do?"

A long silence passes. Anakin peers into her eyes, looking for something he can't identify. 

"What is it?"

Anakin looks away. "No one ever asks me that." Sabé waits, frowning. Finally, he nods. "We'll switch at the next port."


	3. Arrival

K  A  M  I  N  O

Obi-Wan gazes at the seemingly endless rows of clones eating, training, marching in military formation. He tastes bile in his mouth and glances at the young woman beside him, her seething anger so strong it's making them both sick. He places a hand on her shoulder, presses down both physically and through the Force. Padmé's eyes flash but she forces her face into a neutral expression to maintain the calm composure of the Jedi padawan she's pretending to be.

The Kaminoans claim to have been waiting years for a contingent sent by the Council to inspect their product: an army of clones built for the Republic on the orders of the Jedi Master Sifo-Dyas. The only problem is Sifo-Dyas died a decade ago and if the council was expecting to find an army, why would Yoda have kept him in the dark? No, there is something more here and, Obi-Wan worries, something sinister.  

And wrapped up in it all is the attempt of Senator Amidala's life. The template for the clones is a bounty hunter called Jango Fett.

"And where is this bounty hunter now?"

"Oh, we keep him here," the cloner, Lama Su, answers. "Apart from his pay, which is considerable, Fett demanded only one thing: an unaltered clone for himself." Obi-Wan frowns. "Curious, isn't it?"

'''Unaltered'?'' Padmé asks.   
  
"Pure genetic replication. No tampering with the structure to make it more docile, and no growth acceleration."

Padmé's hands ball into fists at her side and Obi-Wan presses on her shoulder again. 

"We should very much like to meet this Jango Fett."

Taun We bows. "I would be very happy to arrange it for you."

"Thank you." 

Padmé throws off his comfort as soon as the Kaminoans leave to make arrangements with the bounty hunter.

"The existence of this army is in opposition to everything I'm fighting for in the Senate. We need to discover who is behind it."

Obi-Wan nods.

 

T  A  T  O  O  I  N  E

The city is exactly as Anakin remembers it. Loud, crowded, and hostile, with sand blowing every which way. As he calculates the best, shortest, trajectory to Watto's junk shop from the outskirts where they landed, Sabé wanders toward the desert and crouches to pick up a handful of sand.

"What are you doing?"

"I had to stay on the ship last time we were here." She smiles as the sand slips through her fingers.

Anakin scowls. "There's nothing to see."

"I've never seen anything like it." He shoots her a confused look as she stands, clapping her hands to knock the sand away. "On Naboo, there's sand by the water but nothing like this. Here. . ."

"Here it's everywhere. And it gets in everything."

Sabé purses her lips.

"I was going to say it sparkles in the sun."

Anakin frowns and reaches over to pull the hood of her cloak forward, to shield her face. "Keep this up. You'll burn."

 

K  A  M  I  N  O

Obi-Wan and Padmé stand behind the cloner, outside the bounty hunter's door.

"Please allow me to do the talking," Obi-Wan murmurs, all but pleading. This Fett is a dangerous criminal, paid to arrange her murder, among other concerns. It is a delicate situation and her emotions are so heightened he's agitated. The look she gives him is unfriendly and annoyed, but she nods. 

The door opens to reveal a boy, nine or ten, with dark hair and inquisitive eyes.  

"Boba, is your father here?"

"Yep," he answers the Kaminoan, but his eyes are on Obi-Wan and Padmé. She smiles.

"May we see him?"

Boba shrugs and moves aside to let them in. "Dad, Taun We's here."

Thunder rumbles as Jango appears in the main room. He's not what Padmé imagined her foe would be like. Maybe rough around the edges, but somewhat unassuming for a criminal, an assassin. 

"Jango, welcome back. Was your trip productive?"

"Fairly."

The cloner nods to his guests. "This is Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi and his apprentice."

"Anakin," she supplies. Obi-Wan's eyes tighten, Jango frowns.

"They've come to check on our progress."

Obi-Wan clears his throat. "Your clones are very impressive. You must be proud."

Padmé's fists tighten, and she shoves them into her robes. Boba stares.

"Want something to drink?"

Padmé blinks. "What? No." She knows better than to accept anything in this situation, though it bothers her to think a kid could want to harm her. "Thank you." He shrugs and there's something familiar about it. Something friendly. 

Padmé half listens to Obi-Wan grill Fett about his whereabouts in the last couple days and if he knew Sifo Dyas - but she's mainly trying to reconcile "dangerous criminal" with the ordinariness of the apartment, the awkward sweetness of the kid. 

The clone, she reminds herself, but it doesn't make him any less a -- _person_. That's who he reminds her of.  _I'm a person and my name is Anakin_.

". . .never met a Jedi."

Padmé pulls herself back to the present. "I've never met a bounty hunter. What's it like?"

"Dunno. S'better than here."

She frowns. "What do you mean?"

Boba starts to answer but Jango says something in a language she doesn't understand and Boba nods and moves away. Jango turns back to Obi-Wan.

"Master who?"

"Sifo-Dyas. Is he not the Jedi who hired you for this job?"

Jango shrugs. "Never heard of him. I was recruited by a man called Tyranus on one of the moons of Bogden."

Padmé's eyes flicker between the two men.

"Curious."

The bounty hunter smirks, his stance relaxed, he's more wily than he first appears. 

"Do you like your army?"

Padmé bristles. Boba peers at her, curious. 

"Enough!" She marches toward them, glaring up at the bounty hunter. "This 'army' is a tragedy. I demand to be taken to this Tyranus."

Jango chuckles. "You're in no position to make demands, Jedi."

"Senator," she corrects, proud. 

Obi Wan swallows a sigh and prepares to draw his lightsaber. Jango is impressed, brave to be so bold with her true identity. Foolish, but brave. 

"If these clones are an army of the republic then I have authority as its representative."

"Over them, maybe. I don't answer to anyone."

Padmé gestures towards him with her palms open. "We can pay you. For your cooperation."

Jango's eyes narrow. "I'm listening."

"We'll pay you the bounty on my head and you take us to the man who hired you."

"Seems easier to kill you now for the same price."

Padmé glances to Boba, watching with quiet intensity. "You don't want death to be your legacy."

Jango purses his lips, looks her up and down. Obi-Wan holds his breath.

"Money first."

Padmé nods and offers her hand. They shake and Obi-Wan releases his weapon, and breath. 

"Boba, get your things." Jango turns to Padmé as the boy runs off. "After you."

She smiles and makes her way to the exit, Obi-Wan just behind, scowling darkly. 

"I have a bad feeling about this."

He pulls his cloak up over his head in preparation for the relentless rain, and the dangerous path they've decided to follow.


	4. Home

T  A  T  O  O  I  N  E

Watto directs them to the Lars homestead, and trades them a broken down speeder for a day's labor. The homestead is far grander than the hovel Anakin was raised in, but also far more isolated. Shmi's freedom required a loss of community, just as his required the loss of her.

"Hello," a - familiar - droid greets them aboveground. "I am C-"

"Threepio?"

"Master Ani!" the droid confirms. "I knew you would return, I knew it!"

"I'm here to see my mother."

"Oh. Oh dear. This way please."

Anakin and Sabé follow then down into the main home, where a young couple is preparing a meal.

"Master Owen." The couple turn at Threepio's greeting. "May I present a most important guest."

"I'm Anakin Skywalker."

The young man's eyes go wide. "Owen Lars." He offers a hand and they shake, awkwardly. "Uh, this is my girlfriend, Beru."

"Hello," she says, warmly, and glances to the young woman beside him.

"I'm . . . Sabé." They hadn't discussed it, but no one is looking for Padmé on Tatooine, and it seems wrong to lie to them.

"I guess I'm your stepbrother," Owen offers. Anakin frowns. He hadn't known his mother was free, married, living as a family. He hadn't known anything. "I had a feeling you might show up someday."

Anakin glances to Sabé. Without her encouragement he might never have. She presses his hand, supportive. Anakin turns back to Owen.

"Is my mother here?"

Owen and Beru share a look. "No. . . Um. I'll show you."

Anakin and Sabé follow Owen and Beru deeper into the home, to a bedroom, decorated plainly, but Anakin recognizes a few knick knacks from his childhood. Simple pieces no one would miss that his mother had used to make their hovel more cozy. An older man lies in the bed, asleep, pale.

"My father," Owen explains. "Cliegg."

"What happened?"

"A couple weeks ago. . . Your mother had gone out early, like she always did. . .to pick mushrooms that grow on the vaporators. From the tracks, she was about halfway home. . .when they took her. Tusken Raiders."

Anakin's eyes harden, the monsters from his childhood.

"Thirty men went out after her. . .only four came back. My father. . ." Owen draws back the blanket to reveal a newly amputated leg. "He can't ride anymore. I'm sorry." Beru touches his arm in comfort. 

Anakin turns to leave, his expression dark and angry. As Owen spoke, he'd seen the events in his mind's eye, in vivid color. He sees his mother now, beaten and bleeding, barely breathing, calling his name. 

"Where are you going?"

"To find my mother."

Sabé follows him up out into the yard, the suns setting in the distance. Anakin turns to meet her gaze. His duty is to protect her, but he can't shut out his mother's cries. 

"You'll be safe here."

"I'm coming with you." He starts to protest but she grabs his hands. "I have medical training. _And_ combat. I can help."

 

K  A  M  I  N  O

The Fetts prepare their ship for takeoff while Obi Wan programs his starfighter to return to Coruscant with his report, detailed and encrypted. He can only hope it reaches the right hands. When set, he launches the fighter and returns to Padmé, waiting to board the bounty hunter's starship. The rain has not let up, if anything it beats harder.

"This is a terrible plan."

"We don't have a choice."

Obi-Wan twists the sleeve of his cloak, trying to wring the water out, and calm his nerves. He can think of a dozen alternatives to handing her over to the enemy, with no guarantee he won't betray them, likely just the opposite. . . But perhaps not one that will get them answers as quickly and she believes it is worth the risk. He sighs. Padmé moves closer, places a hand on his sleeve. 

"Naboo is my home. There's nowhere safer for us to go. And Anakin and Sabé are there. Trust me."

"I trust you. Not this Mandalorian mercenary."

She raises her eyes to his. "I know you'll keep me safe."

Obi-Wan lifts a hand to her brow, softly brushes water off her face. She leans up, lips parted.

"Let's go," Jango calls from the top of the gangplank. Obi-Wan presses his lips flat and gestures for Padmé to go. With one last look at the rain, he follows her up into the ship. 

 

T  A  T  O  O  I  N  E

It's easy for Anakin and Sabé to slip by guards of the Tusken Raider's camp, and once inside it's not dissimilar to the slave community he grew up in. They find Shmi alone in a tent, tied to a wooden post, weak but alive. They work quickly to untie her and move her gently to the ground. 

"Mom," he hisses, urgently. "Mom... Mom!"

"Ani?" She blinks, eyes swollen, sand in her wounds. "Is it you?"

"I'm here, Mom." He gathers her into his arms. "You're safe."

"Ani. My son." Shmi raises a weak hand to his face. "Look at you."

Sabé touches his shoulder. "We need to get her back. Now."

"Ani. . ." She falls back, eyes rolling into her head.

"Mom. . . Mom!"

A storm of emotions clouds his mind. He sees the raiders before him, imagines his blade cutting through the camp. A white hot fire of vengeance flows through his veins and he reaches for the lightsaber at his belt.

"Anakin! Anakin!"

He hears her voice as if through a tunnel, and another, deeper, calling him through the Force. He shakes his head and falls back, suddenly breathless.

" _Anakin_ ," Sabé says again, her hand at his elbow, pulling him back to the present.

"They're animals." His voice is as course and cold as the sand beneath them. "They deserve to die!"

"Slaughtering this village won't help your mother." He looks at Shmi, curled on the ground between them. "We need to get back to the speeder, the farm."

"Go," he tells her, gripping the saber so tightly it cuts into his hand, the physical pain welcome, matching the wrath burning through his body. "I'll make them pay."

"She needs you with her!"

Guilt crashes over him like a wave, cooling the rage and leaving him empty and exhausted. He'd been afraid, ashamed, for so long hatred seemed the only cure. Weary, he lets go of his weapon and moves to pick up Shmi. She's light in his arms. Sabé releases his arm and slips into the shadows to watch the exit.

"Ani. . ." Shmi murmurs as they make their escape in the dark. Anakin presses his lips to her forehead, warm with fever despite the chill in the air.

"Shh, Mom. You're safe, now. We're going home."

 

N  A  B  O  O

Padmé directs Fett to bypass the capital and land _Slave 1_  at her villa in the Lake Country. While Jango fills his hold with treasure, and Boba plays in the garden, Padmé watches the water. Obi-Wan appears at her side, flustered, with the news Anakin and Sabé never arrived, nor did they return to Coruscant.

"They could be anywhere."

"Sabé has many skills," Padmé reassures him, "Anakin is safe with her."

Obi-Wan turns to look at the water. "I know I shouldn't worry." It's against his training, philosophy. But it is far more difficult to practice than to preach.

"It's natural. He's your family."

"He's my student." Padmé looks up at him, her eyes wide with both compassion and accusation. Obi-Wan understands the contradiction. "Jedi are not permitted to. . ."

"Love?"

Now her eyes turn softer, and more dangerous. Obi-Wan's breath catches in his chest.

"Please don't tell him," he murmurs.

She smiles. "Your secret is safe with me."

Obi-Wan nods, once, and turns again to watch the water.

"Cargo is loaded."

Padmé turns to address the bounty hunter. "Pick up one more. We need to make another stop." Jango raises an eyebrow. "Tatooine," she explains.The bounty hunter shrugs and moves off to retrieve his additional prize. Padmé eyes flicker to meet Obi-Wan's glance of surprise followed by comprehension.  

"His mother."

She nods. Sabé had sent an encrypted message through the handmaiden society's network. It had downloaded as soon as they were in orbit of Naboo.

"They're waiting for us."

 


	5. Reunion

T  A  T  O  O  I  N  E

"I'm sorry."

Sabé frowns. "There's nothing you can do?"

The physician shakes her head. "Not here." Even in the city medical care was patchy at best, and Shmi is too weak for the journey. It was a miracle she'd made it home.

Sabé nods understanding and watches the woman leave. This would never happen on Naboo or Coruscant or -- but Tatooine isn't in the Republic. They don't get protection or medical care or aid. She blinks at tears, brushes them angrily away and accidentally deposits sand in her eye, suddenly realizing what Anakin meant. Why do lessons always come with pain?

Shmi and Cliegg are tucked into bed together, their children watching vigil. Cliegg woke briefly when they returned but he's asleep again, and feverish. The doctor doesn't give either good odds for making it through the night.

Beru looks up at Sabé's entrance. She shakes her head, lip trembling, and Beru nods. She rises, pulls Owen away so Anakin can have a moment of privacy with his mother. She touches the young Jedi's shoulder as she leaves, a kindness. Sabé follows behind, offering to help with a meal. 

Anakin approaches the bed, drops to his knees beside Shmi, resting as comfortably as she can, propped up with pillows and a homespun blanket.

"I'm so sorry, Mom. I was supposed to come back for you." Conflicted emotions wrack his body. The sentiment goes against Jedi doctrine but it's how he feels. He should have returned, should have freed her, freed them all.

"You did." She brushes her fingers through his hair. "You're here."

"Too late."

"You saved me, Ani."

He shakes his head. "Cliegg saved you. Sabé saved you. I was too busy trying to be a Jedi." Many emotions play across his face and he's too tired to hide them. Shmi moves her hand to his face, cups his chin as she did when he was a boy.

"Tell me about yourself."

Anakin blinks at tears. "I don't know--" _Who I am._ "--what to say."

"Are you happy?"

He pauses too long for the answer to be yes, or simple. "It's not what I expected it to be," he admits, finally, almost too quiet for her to hear. All these years he's been scared to say it out loud. 

Shmi holds his gaze, brushes his face again. "I am proud of who you are." Anakin falls into her embrace.

"I love you, Mom."

"I know," she murmurs into his hair and kisses his head. "I've always known." He looks up, smiles, as she wipes his tears away. "I'm tired, son, but, please, I want to meet the young lady."

Anakin pauses, confused. "Oh! I'll get her." 

As he runs out, Shmi falls back into the pillows, her breath shallow. She reaches for Cliegg's hand, curls it into her own. 

"Hello." 

Shmi gestures for Sabé to come closer. "Hello. . ."

"Sabé," she provides. 

"Sabé." Shmi gives her a weak smile. She wants to say more, ask her about her life, and Anakin's, elicit her promise to help him find the happiness he deserves. But her eyes slip close. Sabé grasps Shmi's free hand, gently presses her fingers.

"I'm glad to have met you," she whispers. 

Neither Shmi nor Cliegg wake again. In the morning, Owen makes preparation for burial while Anakin retreats into a workroom. Sabé slips in at midday, worry etched on her face, but waits for him to speak. 

"I was supposed to save her."

She approaches slowly, and softly touches his arm.

"I thought. . ." He looks at her, lost. "My dream. . . I thought we came here to save her. I was supposed to save her!" 

He picks up the first thing he sees, something heavy and rusted, and flings it into the wall. It doesn't help. 

"Maybe you came here to say goodbye."

Anakin drops to floor, head in hands. Sabé follows and gently strokes his hair.

"She died safe. Home. Surrounded by family."

 _Free_ , he thinks, and glances at Sabé. Her fingers at his neck soothe.

He leans in, brushes her lips with his, and again, hungrier, when she returns the kiss. 

* * *

Shmi and Cliegg are buried side by side on the grounds of the homestead. It still feels lonely to Anakin, but his mother found happiness here, love, and there is a beautiful view of the setting suns. He stands beside Owen, Beru, and Sabé, all strangers in some ways, but family in others, and united in grief. Owen speaks, quiet and gruff, about his father, and Shmi, who healed Cliegg's broken heart and made them a family. Beru adds her own memories of the couple welcoming her with open arms.

"I know wherever they are, it's become a better place."

Anakin lowers his eyes, envious of the years they spent together, ashamed of how angry, and how lonely he feels. Tears welling, he moves closer to his mother's grave and drops to his knees. He digs his hand into the sand, the tiny particles cling to his flesh. This is where he came from, this is what he gave up, and spent all those years trying to forget. He turns his hand over, lets the sand fall through his fingers. It sparkles in the sunlight.

The roar of an engine breaks their reverie. Anakin activates his lightsaber as he stands, rushing to stand between the unknown ship and the mourners. Sabé follows but he pushes her behind him.

"Stay back, they can only be here for you."

"No one knows we're here except--"

But he doesn't hear her. "I'm sworn to protect you! I won't lose anyone else!"

"Anakin."

His head whips around at the familiar voice. "Master? What are you--?" He spies Padmé behind the Jedi and slowly lowers his blade. "Why are you here?"

"I told them to come," Sabé answers, reaching for his hand in response to his look of betrayal. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you but with your mother. . . it never seemed to be the right time."

Anakin's expression is dark as he turns back to Obi-Wan and Padmé, watching with concern and sympathy. "You found answers?"

"We found the assassin." Obi-Wan nods to a rough looking man in armor leaning by the gangplank of the unfamiliar spaceship. Anakin frowns. "And evidence of a conspiracy much wider than we imagined. It's difficult to know who to trust."

"That's why we need you."

Anakin peers at Padmé, her white flight suit all but glows in the low light of the suns. Still the most beautiful creature he's ever seen. But despite her proximity, somehow further away than ever. There's something, or someone, between them.

"If you're ready," she murmurs, with a glance to the graves, and the somewhat bewildered farmers.

Anakin nods and turns to Owen and Beru. "Thank you." He grasps Owen's hands in his own. "For everything." Owen nods, and Beru leans up to kiss his cheek.

"Good luck," she tells him. "You have a home here whenever you need it."

Anakin follows Obi-Wan up into the strange ship, the two Naboo already inside. "Where are we going?"

Obi-Wan nods to the ship's pilot - and apparent assassin - again. "Geonosis," he provides, and presses the mechanism to close the door.  


	6. Reveal

S  L  A  V  E  1

Obi-Wan catches Anakin up to speed on the secret clone army allegedly commissioned by the Jedi.

"The cloners and Fett are spokes in the machine. I'm hoping this Tyranus is more of a main player."

Anakin's eyes are dark. "What stops this bounty hunter from trading us to the highest bidder?"

"Padmé calls him an honest man."

"You believe that?"

"No. But then I'm the only one on this ship who hasn't been lying all week."

Anakin looks chagrined. "I'm sorry, Master. Padmé asked and I just... didn't know how to say no."

"She is very persuasive," Obi-Wan admits, brushing a finger across his lips. Anakin raises an eyebrow but Obi-Wan is too lost in thought to notice. "Get some sleep," he suggests. "We need you at your best."

"Yes, Master." He closes his eyes to the long day, the many questions, and his swirling and conflicted emotions, and falls into a thankfully dreamless slumber.

Below them the two women chatter quietly, young Boba asleep with his head in Padmé's lap.

"I fear if the Senate learns their army of the Republic already exists there is no chance it will be defeated." She brushes a hand through Boba's curls. "And we will all be dragged into war."

"Geonosis is a droid foundry," Sabé murmurs, thoughtful.

Padmé nods. "If whoever ordered the clones is also dealing droids. . . they could be manipulating this whole conflict."

"To what end?"

"That is what we must discover."

Sabé reaches across the sleeping child to grasp her friend's hand. "We are brave, your highness." A promise. 

Padmé smiles softly. She's been trying to stop this war for a decade and each day it seems more impossible, but she's not alone. She glances up to the Jedi. Perhaps this reunion is the key.

"Is Anakin okay?"

Sabé follows her gaze to the padawan, asleep on the floor, Artoo watching over him. "He will be."

Padmé lowers her eyes. He'd just lost his mother, again, and now she was pulling him into a battle, again. He'd been so happy to see her and she'd taken advantage, ordered him into a deception. "I should have stayed in contact. . . done something to help his mother."

"You were responsible for a planet."

"Planets are made up of people." Her fingers are tangled in Boba's hair. _I'll do better with this child_ , she tells herself. _I won't fail again_.

"You can't save everyone."

"I can try."

Sabé shakes her head with affection. "You worry about the boy, the bill, the fight; I’ll worry about Anakin."

Sensing something in her tone, Padmé looks up. ". . .You care for him."

A smile tugs at Sabé's lips. "We've shared a lot these past few days."

"Yes," Padmé answers, her eyes flickering to Obi-Wan, in meditation beside his student. "I know what you mean."

She glances back to Sabé, the same smile tugging on her lips, and the two oldest friends fall into quiet laughter over the foible of falling in love with a Jedi.

 

G  E  O  N  O  S  I  S

Anakin lowers the view enhancer. "This planet is crawling with Trade Federation, the Commerce Guild and Corporate Alliance. . ."

Obi-Wan frown. "It's a conspiracy. . . but against whom?" He glances to Padmé.

"I don't know. I've never understood why Naboo was a target."

Jango grunts. "Maybe ten years ago it was the planet but these days it's you they want, girl."

"Perhaps you should remain on the ship," Obi-Wan suggests, Anakin and Sabé nodding along.

Padmé glares at each of them in turn. "None of you represent the government. If we have any chance of a diplomatic solution I'm required to be involved." And to Sabé, before she can suggest another deception. "In person."

Obi-Wan steps closer. "At the risk of your life?"

"I'm not afraid to die." Her eyes flutter under the intensity of his look, but she remains firm in her conviction. "We cannot allow war to consume the galaxy."

Begrudgingly, Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Sabé all nod acceptance and agreement. Padmé looks to Jango.

"I've set up a meeting with Tyranus."

"Who is he expecting?"

"A representative of the Hutts."

Anakin scowls as the others' attention shifts to him. He takes a deep breath, and sets his jaw.

"Okay. Sabé, put on the gaudiest thing you have and all your jewelry. The more skin the better. Obi-Wan and I will be bodyguards and we'll bring Threepio to translate."

Padmé crosses her arms. "Should I be bodyguard or servant?"

"Neither." She starts to protest -- they'd just agreed she must be included! -- but he continues, "you're our gift."

"What?"

Anakin points out the window. "The Hutts are a small fish compared to the organizations gathered here. But if they've captured Senator Amidala. . ." He gestures towards her with an open palm. "That guarantees a seat at the table."

* * *

The operation goes better than it has any right to. Be it Anakin's knowledge, Jango's presence, or Amidala's capture, no one questions their credentials and they are given a private audience with Tyranus. Once securely in his inner sanctum, the Jedi surprise their foe before he is able to draw a weapon.

"Dooku," Obi-Wan snarls.

The count raises an eyebrow at the two lightsabers pointed at his throat. "Well, this is unexpected."

He glances around the room, taking in the Senator, free from cuffs and now sporting a small silver gun, an identical one in the hands of the young woman who is clearly not a representative of the Hutts, and the bounty hunter leaning on the wall by the door, waiting to see which way fortune would fall.

"I propose a truce so we might discuss this as civilized peoples."

Anakin looks to Obi-Wan who nods and they lower their weapons, deactivating the glowing blades. Dooku gestures to the table and all but Fett take a seat.

"Shall I order tea?"

"You are an enemy of the state-" Anakin stops speaking at Padmé's raised hand, but he continues to glare at their host.

"Jango Fett," she calls, eyes remaining on the count. "Is Count Dooku the man who recruited you on Bogden?"

The bounty hunter grunts. "Yeah. But as I said, he was called Tyranus."

Padmé nods. "Why did you commission a clone army on behalf of the Jedi, the Republic? And why are you now treating with Viceroy Gunray on a Separatist stronghold? Whose side are you on?"

Dooku spreads his hands, palms open on the table. "The Viceroy came to me for help."

"And the clones?"

The count smiles and turns to address the Jedi.

"It's a great pity that our paths have never crossed before, Obi-Wan. Qui-Gon always spoke very highly of you. I wish he were still alive. I could use his help right now."

"Qui-Gon Jinn would never join you."

"Don't be so sure, my young Jedi. You forget that he was once my apprentice. . .just as you were once his."

Anakin and Sabé share a look of surprise and concern, Padmé's eyes remain on the count.

"He knew all about the corruption in the senate. . ." Dooku smiles to see Obi-Wan’s eyes darken, recognizing validity. "But he would never have gone along with it if he had learned the truth as I have."

"The truth?" Padmé asks.

Dooku turns his gaze to her. "The truth." He leans in. "What if I told you. . .that the Republic was now under the control of a dark lord of the Sith?"

Padmé turns sharply to Obi-Wan but he shakes his head with vehemence.

"No, that's not possible."

"The Jedi would be aware of it," adds Anakin.

"The dark side of the Force has clouded their vision, my friends."

Anakin presses his lips, reaches for Sabé's hand under the table. She threads her fingers through his in comfort.

"Hundreds of senators are now under the influence of a Sith lord called Darth Sidious."  
  
"I don't believe you," Padme states, but a tremble in her voice betrays her shaky confidence.

"This dark lord is manipulating everything. The clones, the separatists, the war."

"The Jedi. . ." Anakin whispers. Dooku nods.

"You must join me, Obi-Wan. . .and together we will destroy the Sith!"


	7. Rebels

C  O  R  U  S  C  A  N  T

"I've gathered the senators I trust." Obi-Wan follows her gaze to the crowd of twelve politicians seated in the sitting room of her apartment, accepting refreshments from Threepio's tray. They've no idea their reality is about to be changed forever. "We're ready when you are."

"Are you certain, Padmé?" He leans close, places a hand on her shoulder. "We could be tried for sedition and treason."

"My loyalty is to the Republic. The Chancellor must be stopped."

Obi-Wan nods, and gives her shoulder a squeeze. Together they move into the room.  

Anakin and Sabé watch from a perch by the window.

"War is inevitable now."

"We've fought before," Anakin reminds her, "and won."

"But this is what Palpatine wanted."

"No." Sabé meets his eyes, bright with a certainty she envies. "Look," he directs her to view the room, Padmé introducing Count Dooku and Mina Bonteri to the senators, Jango Fett watching from across the room, young Boba seated at his feet. . .the odd alliance they are tentatively forming. "Senators, separatists, smugglers, clones, Jedi, Sith -- all working together against him. Instead of _for_ him. This --  is what Palpatine _fears_."

Sabé smiles. "You've become wise."

He laughs and lowers his eyes. "Not yet. But I'm working on it." 

 


End file.
